Delta lawmaker Hon. Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu has filed a fresh lawsuit as the PDP declared her seat vacant In a statement on Saturday.

The daughter of the former governor James Ibori, defended her defection to the APC, stressing that her move is backed by the constitution.

Debo Ologunagba, the PDP spokesperson, earlier stated that Mrs. Ibori-Suenu’s seat in the House of Representatives became vacant the moment she decamped to the APC

Hon. Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu, the lawmaker representing Ethiope East/West Federal Constituency of Delta state, has said that her defection to APC complied with the relevant sections of the constitution, hence there was no need for PDP to declare her seat vacant.

Legit.ng reported that Mrs Ibori-Suenu, the daughter of the former governor of Delta state, James Ibori, announced her defection in a letter addressed to the speaker, Abbas Tajudeen, which was read on the floor of the House on Thursday, December 5, 2024.

In reaction, the PDP declared the seat of Hon. Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu’s seat vacant in the House of Representatives.

But in a swift move, Mrs Ibori-Suenu, on Saturday, December 7, filed an affidavit to support her originating summon, listing her reasons for dumping the PDP, for the APC.

Deposing the affidavit at the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja recently, the lawmaker listed the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Clerk of the House and PDP as defendants.

She cited the lingering internal party crisis as her major reason for moving to the APC.

Ibori-Suenu added that her reasons for leaving the PDP complies with the relevant sections of the constitution, hence there was no need for her seat to be declared vacant. Ibori-Suenu said:

“For over a year, the 3rd defendant has been enmeshed in a series of unresolved leadership crises at the national, which crisis has driven the party into two implacable camps.

“The 3rd defendant (PDP) started grappling with the internal strife before the 2023 presidential election, particularly after the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, primaries conducted for the election of the party’s presidential candidate.

“The division in the party is evident in the call by supporters of the party’s 2023 presidential election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, for the suspension of the former Rivers State Governor (and current Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria) and some others in his camp for anti-party activities, while the forrmer Governor of Rivers State’s supporters had also made counter demands for disciplinary actions against the former vice president and his allies including Sule Lamido and Babangida Aliyu, former Governors of Jigawa and Niger states, respectively, amongst others, for anti-party activities.